Pro Bono Work, the pros and cons

I've been thinking about this one for a while.  A good friend of a close family member asked me for some help recently.  They are just looking to focus their strategy, consolidate what they've got going for them and increase good quality sales.  It's a simple, straightforward local service business, nothing too mad or fancy about it.

Very kindly they offered to pay me for my services but I wouldn't hear of it.  When the close family member I know them through was having a tough time a few years ago, this person was there for them.  More than some other family members in fact.  I would love to be able to help her out now without having to worry her purse strings.  I believe that good things should come back to you. 

The freebie help was met with an interesting response.  I think I can understand why: she probably thinks that if there's nothing in it for me, then I won't put much effort into the project.  If I were to have some vested interest, I would drive more power into my efforts, perhaps.

I regret telling her I wouldn't take anything for the work now, not because I'm broke (which I am, GOD I'm so stupid), but because giving the goods away for free is going to devalue the work that I do.

DAMNIT. 

You see? This is why I haven't started up full time.  I NEVER TAKE MY OWN ADVICE. 

Pledge 50 euro by Outvesting

Hello all :)

I would like to draw your attention to this here voluntary initiative:

James Corbett blogs here and is currently championing a bloody good idea. Group investing a small amount so there is not a huge amount of risk per investment, but gives a small business an injection of cash that is much needed - a mere €5,000 to help them on their way. James is gathering 100 people together who are each giving €50- to a business...

Now I don't know any of the details yet but not only is it a fun idea but it is a worthy one. Think of it as charity, think of it as gambling, think of it as chambling or gambity for all I care, I've signed up for it and I love the idea of helping out worthy businesses who have a good idea but are struggling to fund getting the idea to market.

Many of the financial supports that are already out there - from small business loans (ahem, hello bankers) to First Step to the County/City Enterprise Boards to the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance are already helping many fledgling business out, cashwise. A few of them require matching funding. Most people have a bit of savings or can raise a little capital from friends, family and fools - but wouldn't an extra €5k really help the cashflow situation?

So many times a business will apply for funding and only ask for the minimum so that they don't take on more than they can pay back. An extra bit of cash is sometimes all they need to patch each source of finance to the next, in a long line of varied supports.

I commend the chaps over here who spurned the discussion, and brought about this little initiative of James' - let's hope it's not a "little" initiative for too long.

PS. I hope it's open to all sorts of businesses. A lot has been done for start-ups already, I'd love to be involved in keeping something afloat with a new business idea in an existing business... A business that is reinventing itself in the new economy...

**EDIT** I now have a blog to link to about this!

Lots of business ideas, Inventions and New Services

People get in contact with me every day about a new idea they have had - they want to see if there is a business to by found in their idea.

I'm sorry if this sounds harsh but I must be honest. Most fantastical ideas have been thought of by now. For every new invention, there are usually lots of previous attempts. Most of them will have failed, and a few will have found success a lot less lucrative than originally anticipated.

Don't think I'm harsh - if you have a new idea, test it out. Not on your friends and family who may not want to hurt your feelings, but head to the next county, find your ideal target market - age demographic/gender/financial background - and really test it out with people you don't know, people who will be honest with you. Sometimes you need to take that scary step - don't worry, if your idea truly is as brilliant and as you believe it is, having an anonymous focus group reinforce your opinion will only be a good thing.

The way to protect your idea before you unleash a crude prototype on people you don't know, is to registered-post the designs to yourself and lock the unopened envelope away in a safe somewhere. If the time comes, a judge will open the envelope in court and go "ahoy ahoy, this idea certainly seems to be yours, good sir/madam..."

Be warned though, an idea or concept cannot be protected by copyright (disclaimer: I am not qualified in law, I just found all this out over time) - it is easier to copyright a design, painting, photograph, poem, song...

When it comes to protecting your Intellectual Property, there are many options open to you. Copyright, doesn't cost a jot. You don't have to buy the rights to use the copyright symbol (c), you just use it as a reminder to anyone checking out your product, that you are the sole owner of the property and you are aware of your rights.

Patents are expensive. There are not a lot of patent lawyers out there so the few that are, are busy and can charge as such. It is a valuable asset, a patent, so you need to be aware that it takes investment of both time and money to properly protect your idea. The thing about patents, is that they are registered in categories and by country. So, that can mean you could register your product in 5 or 6 categories, in the EU only or Ireland only or just in the UK and Ireland or in the EU and the US but not in Australia - you have so many decisions to make when considering patent protection. The best thing is to take some time out and search through the Patents Office website - they have lots of information there about how you can protect your idea.

If you have a service, which doesn't give you the facility to register a design - what can you do? Well, one option is to develop an excellent brand and register that instead - as a trade mark. You know Coca-Cola, the world's most recognisable brand? It doesn't have patent protection. It has registered the trade mark - have a look at the next can of coke you see, it will have a little (R) beside the brand somewhere. The thing about patenting, is that you are writing down your idea, therefore when the patent runs out - and they do - it will be anybody's gain. Coca-Cola have never registered a patent for their magic ingredient, simply because they never want anyone else to know what it is. So think about patenting before you do it - is it the best route to take? Think about the long-term plans and implications for the decisions you make now. Look at McDonalds - their greatest asset is their brand. Best option? Trademark.

Before you go to the expense of organising all your trademark categories for all the countries in which you see your product/service selling, you can use the (TM) after your brand. Properly protecting something means having registered it, which is why Coca-Cola have the (R) not a (TM) here in little old Ireland.

So that's three main options you have when protecting your intellectual property - copyright, trademark, patent.

There are guidelines available here for protecting your idea in Europe.

References:
Copyright Association
2 Patent Attorney Firms I have had dealings with - in Dublin and in Wicklow
Patent Office, Ireland - Kilkenny, actually, some lovely helpful people down there!
EU Patents Office
World Intellectual Property Organisation - in Geneva, Switzerland
OHIM - for registering trademarks and designs in all 27 member states

Coffee Break Recommendation

I read a great (very long!) blog post about one person's experience as an entrepreneur. It's like a mini-bio, of both the business and the man behind it. I wanted to flag it here because it echoes one strong piece of advice that I am hearing from the most successful entrepreneurs that I know, all the time: when you start a business, go and speak to other entrepreneurs face-to-face and learn everything you can from them. Don't stop doing that when you have started and are successfully up & running - keep having those quick coffees face-to-face with the best people in your business - your contacts.

A few really great business people have said that to me over the years and it's true - you will glean more from an hour face-to-face than a day on the phone or even on Twitter!

Have a read of this with a big cup of coffee, it's long but it's worth it - lots of food for thought! Most interestingly, he doesn't hate VC's!! Has some great tips on how to handle them...

I'll stop rambling here now and direct you to the good stuff: SEOmoz's Blogpost, "My Startup Experience" - enjoy!

So you need Funding...

That old nugget.

What do you do if you need funds, where can you begin.

Well there are a variety of options available and it does of course depend on what type of business you are in. Risky high-cost start ups are catered for by business angels, banks and of course venture capital firms. Yes they are called vulture capitalists for a reason, but the way they see it - they're taking a huge risk investing in a new type of business so they need some sort of security blanket, and will take up a chew of your business ownership for their trouble.

For the more day-to-day businesses the first stop should always be your own bank or credit union. You have been giving them your business for years, so see what they can do for you. It's all about shopping around and remembering the most important thing - you are in charge. This is your business, they owe you nothing - if they give you a business loan, they are making money on it so although you can thank them for their assistance, there is no need to name your first born after them. Banks are in it for the money - never forget that.

They also hate risk. They are not insurance companies, they are completely risk averse, so the more you can reassure them that there is little risk to giving you a start up loan, the better a position you will be in, in the long run.

Contacts are key to business, we all know that. So apply that to your funding situation. That is why I mentioned going back to your own bank. I have a bank manager I can ring and chat to about my personal finances (or lack thereof!), at my local branch. That is what they are there for. If you are thinking about starting a business down the line and considering your funding options, start chatting with your bank manager now. They are as hungry for business as the rest of the world.

If the bank says no, there could be a million reasons why. So don't lose faith. Like in a sporting situation - have a look at the post-match analysis and figure out why. Ask them straight out, they might just tell you! It might be that your credit history is poor with them. Or that you have no collateral. Or that they believe the market you are trying to break into is flooded already (they may have an inside track on this, their current customers selling the same things as you, at the same location, may be in financial difficulty - a great way to find out the most important info on your new market, could be in your loan-refusal-feedback-chat!).

If that bank does say no, approach the credit union. Find your local one, here. The staff in the branches I have visited are very supportive of indigenous industry! Local business is good for business. Cheesey but true!

Business Angels are people who invest in your business without grabbing all the shares. Almost exactly what it says on the tin really. If you can find one, good on you! There are some around... There was a Business Angel network running for a while but the last I heard it was running out of juice. More recently I have heard of people finding their own angels. Back to those all important contacts! It could be family friends, friends of friends you meet at parties or conferences (or party conferences, shudder!) - it could be anyone at all. Someone whose eyes start to twinkle when you talk about your new business idea. If they have any sort of passion for your business, they might just lend you those all important funds!

First Step is a great organisation, although their coffers are always stretched. They will help you get a small loan, when all the others have shown you the door. First Step are what you call, the lenders of last resort.

I heard the County Enterprise Boards and Enterprise Ireland on Today FM a couple of weeks ago talking about starting a business, but they were more talking about doing Start Your Own Business courses (incidentally, they run all over the country, right through the year so you can find one near you if you really want to impress the bank manager). What they did mention - briefly - was their funding situation. If you are manufacturing something different, or if you are trading internationally, then they can talk to you about money. If you're not - they can't. It seemed pretty clear - if you want to get into retail for example, they won't be able to help fund you.

The one thing everybody will need, is a business plan I'm afraid! That's where maybe the CEB's could help. Some of them run business planning workshops - not all, so you'll have to check with yours. I've blogged about it before, here, so check back for a basic starting point. Email me if you need more detail... I wasn't planning on running any business planning workshops myself but for the price of a pint... ;) Who am I kidding. A hot port please, if this weather keeps up...